How to display unicode text in OpenGL?

You should also check out the FTGL library.

FTGL is a free cross-platform Open Source C++ library that uses Freetype2 to simplify rendering fonts in OpenGL applications. FTGL supports bitmaps, pixmaps, texture maps, outlines, polygon mesh, and extruded polygon rendering modes.

This project was dormant for awhile, but is recently back under development. I haven't updated my project to use the latest version, but you should check it out.

It allows for using any True Type Font via the FreeType font library.

I recommend reading this OpenGL font tutorial. It's for the D programming language but it's a nice introduction to various issues involved in implementing a glyph caching system for rendering text with OpenGL. The tutorial covers Unicode compliance, antialiasing, and kerning techniques.

D is pretty comprehensible to anyone who knows C++ and most of the article is about the general techniques, not the implementation language.

Id recommend FTGL as already recommended above, however I have implemented a freetype/OpenGL renderer myself and thought you might find the code handy if you want reinvent this wheel yourself. I'd really recommend FTGL though, its a lot less hassle to use. :)

* glTextRender class by Semi Essessi
 *
 * FreeType2 empowered text renderer
 *
 */

#include "glTextRender.h"
#include "jEngine.h"

#include "glSystem.h"

#include "jMath.h"
#include "jProfiler.h"
#include "log.h"

#include <windows.h>

FT_Library glTextRender::ftLib = 0;

//TODO::maybe fix this so it use wchar_t for the filename
glTextRender::glTextRender(jEngine* j, const char* fontName, int size = 12)
{
#ifdef _DEBUG
    jProfiler profiler = jProfiler(L"glTextRender::glTextRender");
#endif
    char fontName2[1024];
    memset(fontName2,0,sizeof(char)*1024);
    sprintf(fontName2,"fonts\\%s",fontName);

    if(!ftLib)
    {
#ifdef _DEBUG
        wchar_t fn[128];
        mbstowcs(fn,fontName,strlen(fontName)+1);
        LogWriteLine(L"\x25CB\x25CB\x25CF Font: %s was requested before FreeType was initialised", fn);
#endif
        return;
    }

    // constructor code for glTextRender
    e=j;

    gl = j->gl;

    red=green=blue=alpha=1.0f;

    face = 0;

    // remember that for some weird reason below font size 7 everything gets scrambled up
    height = max(6,(int)floorf((float)size*((float)gl->getHeight())*0.001666667f));
    aHeight = ((float)height)/((float)gl->getHeight());

    setPosition(0.0f,0.0f);

    // look in base fonts dir
    if(FT_New_Face(ftLib, fontName2, 0, &face ))
    {
        // if we dont have it look in windows fonts dir
        char buf[1024];
        GetWindowsDirectoryA(buf,1024);
        strcat(buf, "\\fonts\\");
        strcat(buf, fontName);

        if(FT_New_Face(ftLib, buf, 0, &face ))
        {
            //TODO::check in mod fonts directory
#ifdef _DEBUG
            wchar_t fn[128];
            mbstowcs(fn,fontName,strlen(fontName)+1);
            LogWriteLine(L"\x25CB\x25CB\x25CF Request for font: %s has failed", fn);
#endif
            face = 0;
            return;
        }
    }

    // FreeType uses 64x size and 72dpi for default
    // doubling size for ms 
    FT_Set_Char_Size(face, mulPow2(height,7), mulPow2(height,7), 96, 96);

    // set up cache table and then generate the first 256 chars and the console prompt character
    for(int i=0;i<65536;i++) 
    {
        cached[i]=false;
        width[i]=0.0f;
    }

    for(unsigned short i = 0; i < 256; i++) getChar((wchar_t)i);
    getChar(CHAR_PROMPT);

#ifdef _DEBUG
    wchar_t fn[128];
    mbstowcs(fn,fontName,strlen(fontName)+1);
    LogWriteLine(L"\x25CB\x25CB\x25CF Font: %s loaded OK", fn);
#endif
}

glTextRender::~glTextRender()
{
    // destructor code for glTextRender
    for(int i=0;i<65536;i++)
    {
        if(cached[i])
        {
            glDeleteLists(listID[i],1);
            glDeleteTextures(1,&(texID[i]));
        }
    }

    // TODO:: work out stupid freetype crashz0rs
    try
    {
        static int foo = 0;
        if(face && foo < 1)
        {
            foo++;
            FT_Done_Face(face);
            face = 0;
        }
    }
    catch(...)
    {
        face = 0;
    }
}


// return true if init works, or if already initialised
bool glTextRender::initFreeType()
{
    if(!ftLib)
    {
        if(!FT_Init_FreeType(&ftLib)) return true;
        else return false;
    } else return true;
}

void glTextRender::shutdownFreeType()
{
    if(ftLib)
    {
        FT_Done_FreeType(ftLib);
        ftLib = 0;
    }
}

void glTextRender::print(const wchar_t* str)
{
    // store old stuff to set start position
    glPushAttrib(GL_TRANSFORM_BIT);
    // get viewport size
    GLint viewport[4];
    glGetIntegerv(GL_VIEWPORT, viewport);

    glMatrixMode(GL_PROJECTION);
    glPushMatrix();
    glLoadIdentity();

    gluOrtho2D(viewport[0],viewport[2],viewport[1],viewport[3]);
    glPopAttrib();

    float color[4];
    glGetFloatv(GL_CURRENT_COLOR, color);

    glPushAttrib(GL_LIST_BIT | GL_CURRENT_BIT  | GL_ENABLE_BIT | GL_TRANSFORM_BIT); 
    glMatrixMode(GL_MODELVIEW);
    glPushMatrix();
    glLoadIdentity();

    glEnable(GL_TEXTURE_2D);
    //glDisable(GL_DEPTH_TEST);

    // set blending for AA
    glEnable(GL_BLEND);
    glBlendFunc(GL_SRC_ALPHA, GL_ONE_MINUS_SRC_ALPHA);

    glTranslatef(xPos,yPos,0.0f);

    glColor4f(red,green,blue,alpha);

    // call display lists to render text
    glListBase(0u);
    for(unsigned int i=0;i<wcslen(str);i++) glCallList(getChar(str[i]));

    // restore old states
    glMatrixMode(GL_MODELVIEW);
    glPopMatrix();
    glPopAttrib();

    glColor4fv(color);

    glPushAttrib(GL_TRANSFORM_BIT);
    glMatrixMode(GL_PROJECTION);
    glPopMatrix();
    glPopAttrib();
}

void glTextRender::printf(const wchar_t* str, ...)
{
    if(!str) return;

    wchar_t*    buf = 0;
    va_list  parg;
    va_start(parg, str);

    // allocate buffer
    int len = (_vscwprintf(str, parg)+1);
    buf = new wchar_t[len];
    if(!buf) return;
    vswprintf(buf, str, parg);
    va_end(parg);

    print(buf);

    delete[] buf;
}

GLuint glTextRender::getChar(const wchar_t c)
{
    int i = (int)c;

    if(cached[i]) return listID[i];

    // load glyph and get bitmap
    if(FT_Load_Glyph(face, FT_Get_Char_Index(face, i), FT_LOAD_DEFAULT )) return 0;

    FT_Glyph glyph;
    if(FT_Get_Glyph(face->glyph, &glyph)) return 0;

    FT_Glyph_To_Bitmap(&glyph, FT_RENDER_MODE_NORMAL, 0, 1);

    FT_BitmapGlyph bitmapGlyph = (FT_BitmapGlyph)glyph;
    FT_Bitmap& bitmap = bitmapGlyph->bitmap;

    int w = roundPow2(bitmap.width);
    int h = roundPow2(bitmap.rows);

    // convert to texture in memory
    GLubyte* texture = new GLubyte[2*w*h];

    for(int j=0;j<h;j++)
    {
        bool cond = j>=bitmap.rows;

        for(int k=0;k<w;k++)
        {
                texture[2*(k+j*w)] = 0xFFu;
                texture[2*(k+j*w)+1] = ((k>=bitmap.width)||cond) ? 0x0u : bitmap.buffer[k+bitmap.width*j];
        }
    }

    // store char width and adjust max height
    // note .5f
    float ih = 1.0f/((float)gl->getHeight());
    width[i] = ((float)divPow2(face->glyph->advance.x, 7))*ih;
    aHeight = max(aHeight,(.5f*(float)bitmap.rows)*ih);

    glPushAttrib(GL_LIST_BIT | GL_CURRENT_BIT  | GL_ENABLE_BIT | GL_TRANSFORM_BIT);

    // create gl texture
    glGenTextures(1, &(texID[i]));

    glEnable(GL_TEXTURE_2D);

    glBindTexture(GL_TEXTURE_2D, texID[i]);
    glTexParameteri(GL_TEXTURE_2D, GL_TEXTURE_MAG_FILTER, GL_LINEAR);
    glTexParameteri(GL_TEXTURE_2D, GL_TEXTURE_MIN_FILTER, GL_LINEAR);
    glTexParameteri(GL_TEXTURE_2D, GL_TEXTURE_WRAP_S, GL_CLAMP);
    glTexParameteri(GL_TEXTURE_2D, GL_TEXTURE_WRAP_T, GL_CLAMP);

    glTexImage2D(GL_TEXTURE_2D, 0, GL_RGBA8, w, h, 0, GL_LUMINANCE_ALPHA, GL_UNSIGNED_BYTE, texture);

    glPopAttrib();

    delete[] texture;

    // create display list
    listID[i] = glGenLists(1);

    glNewList(listID[i], GL_COMPILE);

    glBindTexture(GL_TEXTURE_2D, texID[i]);

    glMatrixMode(GL_MODELVIEW);
    glPushMatrix();

    // adjust position to account for texture padding
    glTranslatef(.5f*(float)bitmapGlyph->left, 0.0f, 0.0f);
    glTranslatef(0.0f, .5f*(float)(bitmapGlyph->top-bitmap.rows), 0.0f);

    // work out texcoords
    float tx=((float)bitmap.width)/((float)w);
    float ty=((float)bitmap.rows)/((float)h);

    // render
    // note .5f
    glBegin(GL_QUADS);
        glTexCoord2f(0.0f, 0.0f);
        glVertex2f(0.0f, .5f*(float)bitmap.rows);
        glTexCoord2f(0.0f, ty);
        glVertex2f(0.0f, 0.0f);
        glTexCoord2f(tx, ty);
        glVertex2f(.5f*(float)bitmap.width, 0.0f);
        glTexCoord2f(tx, 0.0f);
        glVertex2f(.5f*(float)bitmap.width, .5f*(float)bitmap.rows);
    glEnd();

    glPopMatrix();

    // move position for the next character
    // note extra div 2
    glTranslatef((float)divPow2(face->glyph->advance.x, 7), 0.0f, 0.0f);

    glEndList();

    // char is succesfully cached for next time
    cached[i] = true;

    return listID[i];
}

void glTextRender::setPosition(float x, float y)
{
    float fac = ((float)gl->getHeight());
    xPos = fac*x+FONT_BORDER_PIXELS; yPos = fac*(1-y)-(float)height-FONT_BORDER_PIXELS;
}

float glTextRender::getAdjustedWidth(const wchar_t* str)
{
    float w = 0.0f;

    for(unsigned int i=0;i<wcslen(str);i++)
    {
        if(cached[str[i]]) w+=width[str[i]];
        else
        {
            getChar(str[i]);
            w+=width[str[i]];
        }
    }

    return w;
}